209- A New Vocation in the Church: “Spiritual Formator”

Mary Shows the Way

The intention of the following text is to present in a succinct way a Function or Vocation in the Church that does not as yet exist as such: that of the Spiritual Formator. Some of the tasks involved in this function, like Spiritual Direction, Teaching Spiritual Theology… have been and are still realised by some persons in the Church. But never all the tasks of the Spiritual Formator. For instance, being a Master of Novices in a monastery or a formation house does not coincide exactly with being a Master in Spiritual Life. In fact, the Master of Novices is also in charge of the formation into religious life and he is not necessarily trained to become a Spiritual Formator. However, despite the existence of some of the tasks, performed by some members of the Church, there is no formal ad hoc preparation of Spiritual Formators.

Up to the present day we do not have a function or vocation that realises all the necessary tasks of a Spiritual Formator or Master in Spiritual Life. We do not have a specific training and formation for it.

The following text is meant to present the actual state of things and to outline the nature of this vocation and its function in the Church. It further suggests that what should follow would be to offer a journey of training for potential candidates for three to five years at least.

Being a Spiritual Formator in a way is a blend of an intellectually very well-formed person in philosophy, human sciences, theology, and spiritual theology, with a long and solid experience in Spiritual Life. For many years this person will have been a disciple to other experienced people, thereby allowing him or her to receive the needed discernment. This blend of intellect, experience and discernment, plus a Call from Jesus for such a ministry, constitutes this new vocation in the Church.

In addition, we can say that Vatican Council II reminded us that striving for Holiness is not the monopoly of the Consecrated life. As a consequence, there is a need to form and support all the persons who hear this call for Holiness but do not belong to any school of spirituality. Formation in Spiritual Life should be a specific ministry in the Church offered to all, with expertise and professionalism. There is a pressing need to prepare ministers for this function.

To reiterate, the need now for Masters in Spiritual Life, or Spiritual Formators, is more than ever necessary. In fact, this function has as its main task the formation of all the persons who receive Jesus’ Call to go deeper in their spiritual life, so that they become properly capable of handling their own growth and of responding properly to the call to Holiness and fullness of love.

Teaching the practical means to empower Christians, so that they can respond fruitfully to the Call to Holiness, however, cannot be done in an amateur way. It is a very sacred task to train Spiritual Formators and it requires all the effort from the Church to fill the void this absence leaves.

It goes without saying that such vocation and service in the Church goes alongside a much-needed renewal in Spiritual Theology and a concerted effort to produce a common Body of Teaching for the Prophetic Function of the Church, in charge of the spiritual journey from the Second Conversion, i.e. Jesus’ Call, till the end, namely, the fullness of love.

Here are twelve important points to understand and properly promote this vocation:

1- Spiritual Formator, as we define it, means a person capable of forming others in Spiritual Life. Formation is much wider than specific tasks or ministries. Essentially, a formator is a person capable of giving courses in Spiritual Life, following up a person for the implementation of the Spiritual Teaching, (Spiritual Tuition), and offering a more in-depth Spiritual Direction. It goes without saying that if properly trained other easier tasks will be performed at a higher and professional level: talks, short and long retreats. In sum, a formator will be capable of teaching, forming, understanding spiritual life, and will also be capable of a high-quality discernment in the different issues faced by spiritual persons, the obstacles and problems of spiritual life.

2- Many persons do perform some of the above missions in the Church but often they are offered in a fragmented and diluted form. Being a “Master in Spiritual Life” essentially combines three qualities well blended together: science, experience and discernment. A degree in Spiritual Theology doesn’t make the person a Spiritual Formator. Experience and discernment are needed and need to be led and formed.

3- The function (the job) itself of “Spiritual Master” doesn’t exist in the Church. If some missions in the Church like “Master of Novices” or “Retreat Guide” (eg: leading the Spiritual Exercises), or the Ancient Elder Monk, are quite close to it, they are not exactly the same and today no formal preparation in the Church for such a mission is offered.

4- “Spiritual Formation” is needed in the Church in all areas of the Prophetic Function: Monastic Life, Religious Life, Secular Institutes, New Movements in the Church, including individual lay persons striving toward a deeper spiritual life and holiness.

5- The weakness and fragmentation of the different spiritualities in the Church has led to a lukewarm consecrated life. The division into different schools of spiritualities has reached a point of fragmentation which prevents the Church from having a fundamental core pedestal for Spiritual Life and Spiritual Formation. A common Doctrine for a deep Spiritual Life is needed before finding ways for legitimate diversification in Spiritual Schools. Note: Spiritual Theology today is rather weak, diluted and fragmented. This has had negative repercussions on Spiritual Formation in the Church. For renewal to occur serious commitment is of the essence, people needing to dedicate their lives to it.

6- Having leaned essentially on fidelity to a Monastic Rule or to a Style of Life or a Horarium to become a saint, made many think that this is enough and that there is no need for a proper Spiritual Formation. Consequently, people have lost interest in Spiritual Theology and its role in Spiritual Formation. This has also led to a weakening of spiritual formation, its dilution and lack of development. Devotions, local habits and rites end up replacing robust spiritual life and giving the wrong impression that these are means of true sanctification.

7- The inner workings proper to spiritual life still constitute an invisible inner world often classified as difficult to describe and apophatic, leading to the conviction that there is no teaching and formation for spiritual matters, with the result that any common effort to develop spiritual formation is abandoned. This has led to allegedly relegating Spiritual Life to a private sphere -an inner forum- leading finally to ignorance, fragmentation and dilution of spiritual life. It is an error to think that Spiritual Life cannot be expressed. The thousands of written pages by St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross are here to show us the way.

8- The idea of focusing all our energy on the pursuit of God and Union with Christ and the fullness of His love becomes secondary or left to personal private effort. The reality of knowing how to maintain and ensure a steady spiritual growth is really non-existent. The need for a healthy spiritual emulation and support in spiritual growth has just not been met.

9- In order to realise this mission, the Church needs to form individuals in all walks of the Prophetic Function, to become professional Spiritual Formators, capable of facing such a difficult, complex, difficult mission.

10- Spiritual Formator, or Master in Spiritual Life, emerges and stands alone as a specific vocation in the Church that deserves all our attention and effort. Its influence on the Church, especially over the Prophetic Function will be immense. Progress in Spiritual Life will allow the lives of many persons engaged in the Spiritual Journey to reach completion and to bear amazing fruits for the Church and the World. It is very difficult to measure the fruits of the implementation of such a vocation.

11- In order to achieve this formation, one needs to offer a complete training in: knowledge/ science/ doctrine, in discernment, and in the practice of this vocation. The Church needs to offer a free space and time for each person to learn, practice and discern as it does with Religious and Seminarians in their first years of formation. This is why we call it a new “Vocation” in the Church, and also a new Function in the Church. But it is not necessarily binding as to formal consecration. One can go back to his or her diocese and serve or become part of the School of Mary. It is not a formal consecration as we know it today – one remains free.

12- Offering a residential possibility for this formation is a necessity. No other formal obligations or missions should be assigned to the person. Full freedom to be formed and trained should be given. Three years is a reasonable minimum time to have the basic formation. Further formation can be given leading to a Master’s Degree within two more years.

As a result of these twelve points, we need to concentrate all our efforts on training persons who have the call to serve their brothers and sisters as Spiritual Masters.

Jean Khoury

6th August 2021

Transfiguration of the Lord

199- Letter for a Young Person Called to Work in the Field of Spiritual Life

How we Become "Masters in Spiritual Life"

“Working in the field of Spiritual Life” means one or more of the following activities:

- Teaching Spiritual Life (Spiritual Theology)

- Offering Formation in Spiritual Life (Masters of Novices, Masters in Institutes,…)

- Offering Personal Tuition in Spiritual Life

- Offering Spiritual Direction.

Dear B,

I would just like to clarify something important regarding how we are enabled to fulfil the mission of teaching, forming and guiding in Spiritual Life, according to the Catholic Tradition. You certainly intuit it or have even heard me talking about it. First, I want to remind you of the conditions to become a master in spiritual life, then I will give you a specific warning.

I- A reminder of what you already know: what makes us Masters in Spiritual Life is a prudent blending of three capacities (see this in St. Teresa of Avila):

1- Science (Degree in Spiritual Theology).

2- Personal Experience of God (intense spiritual life, receiving manifold graces related to our spiritual growth, practising Lectio Divina and Prayer of the Heart).

3- Discernment that comes from discipleship: many years of personal tuition/supervision and Spiritual Direction from a very knowledgeable master.

When the three are combined under the supervision of the Tutor, this helps re-cognise i.e. it makes the connection between two things: a- what was learnt (science, the Degree, the books, the readings, the study) and b- what has been felt or perceived or understood in our experience (or that which is not experienced) of God.

Re-cognising is a very delicate and subtle operation where two “worlds” meet and seem to us to match: on one hand the world of our experience and on the other hand the world of what we read or study. These two worlds are distinct. Re-cognising occurs when we feel that they have met and resonated on a point or more. Re-cognising offers a new understanding of both our experience and the text and roots in us a new knowledge and “judgement” in spiritual matters. The Holy Spirit, Master of Spiritual Life, leads the operation. It is a long process knit together by a multitude of graces which goes towards the formation of the new master.

We realise this operation both consciously and unconsciously. The unconscious operation occurs almost always and consists in the projection of our own experience on what we are reading. We therefore end up by unconsciously filtering and conditioning our reading.

Our own prism interferes unknowingly: it often either reduce or deviates from the real objective sense of what the author is saying.

An important observation: when we talk about “authors” in spiritual life we need to make a very important distinction that many scholars don’t make. It is very common to make the mistake of confusing Saints and Doctors of the Church (or Masters). Of course, Doctors of the Church are also saints and even have an eminent holiness, but they are much more than just saints.

A saint is only a saint and is not necessarily called to teach, lead or explain spiritual matters. This is why St. Thomas Aquinas in a concise way says: “let the saint pray for us and let the doctor teach us”. Even if Saints are writing about their spiritual life or about the graces they have received, they are not teachers or doctors. A “Doctor of the Church” or a “Spiritual Master” on the contrary has received from God extra graces to help him do two things:

a- understand what the graces are all about and situate them correctly on the journey of transformation/sanctification

b- express and explain the graces correctly.

As we can understand therefore, great confusion can result from this delicate, risky but vital operation of Re-cognition. Consulting a Master is very much required here in order to ensure the necessary attention to an accurate process of “re-cognition”. A lot of patience, resilience and humility are needed here. And of course, a great spirit of obedience to God through the Master is a must. 

Of course, it goes without saying that the choice of the Master here is decisive. As Saint John of the Cross puts it: the disciple will become like the master, so we need to pay great attention to the hands into which we are entrusting ourselves.

Three pitfalls are worth mentioning:

1- The obscurity inherent in spiritual life and its consequences: an important component of spiritual life is the difficulty to perceive it, understand it and explain it correctly. Faith, by its very nature, as a theological virtue implies a certain obscurity. Spiritual experience, then, despite the fact that it is an “experience” of what the Holy Spirit is doing in us, remains obscure. This can very easily induce us into error and makes finding the correct understanding and explanation of the experience more arduous. Humility, patience and perseverance are of the essence here.

Spiritual Life is obscure like faith, because God action in us happens essentially in our spirit, which is above our consciousness, “your life is now hidden with Christ in God” (Col 3:3) and any echoes that might fall into our awareness (mind, emotions, senses) must be subject to subtle discernment and correct interpretation. What we feel or don’t feel (soul-emotions-body, i.e. area of awareness) is not necessarily what occurs in our spirit (beyond awareness), while the latter is in fact the cornerstone and measure of progress.

Experiencing the action of the Holy Spirit can generate a very wide range of thoughts, images, feelings and sensations that can be even perceived as contradictory. The spiritual experience is therefore multifaceted and versatile. Not being purely material at least in its source, its description ends up by being rather relative.

Understanding and describing a spiritual experience is difficult also because it is conditioned by the culture, experience and knowledge of the individual: we often re-cognise in our own way! As a consequence, what we read about the experience of others can be interpreted in different ways, some correct and others not.

As a consequence, studying spiritual life, reading various authors and working in the field of Spiritual Formation, is a very sensitive undertaking. Paradoxically accuracy is needed but is altogether difficult to achieve. The pitfall is to transform that long initial lack of precision and tangibility into something certain and final.

The beginner tends to rush into conclusions, by pushing the initial normal lack of clarity and tangibility inherent in Spiritual Life toward assumptions and convictions that are artificial. Intellectual patience is a very important form of charity towards the full mystery of what the Holy Spirit is accomplishing in us. Accepting not to have clarity for long time is necessary. Otherwise we choose part of the truth, and transform it into the whole truth which is the root of any heretical attitude. In Greek, heresy means to choose (part of the truth)!

Another factor of imprecision: People who are meant to work in the field of Spiritual Life need to know that the Holy Spirit is meant to provide them with two graces in order to support this sacred mission: a- understanding the graces received and b- being able to talk about them and explain them (see St. Teresa of Avila, Life 17,5). Not every person or even every saint is meant to receive these two graces because they are only related to the service/ministry. As a consequence, we will often find people (saints for instance) giving an account of their own spiritual state (present, past) who haven’t necessarily received the second and third grace mentioned by St. Teresa of Avila. They will not be necessarily accurate in their understanding and explanation. Therefore, relying on their perception and judgement is not always safe. As a consequence, an extra effort is necessary on our part to understand and explain properly what we read. This factor of uncertainty is normal but has to be taken into consideration always.

2- Confusing levels: spiritual life’s growth could be comparted to an ascending spiral. Seen from above, growth will look like moving in an indefinite circular way. If we take a point on the circle and focus on it, we might think that we have come back to the same point. But a side view of the spiral will show us that it is two different points or levels of spiritual growth.

As an example, Martha and Mary are mentioned by St. Teresa of Avila at least twice, once in the Prayer of Union (4^th-5^thMansions) and another in the 7^th Mansions. An inexperienced eye won’t see the difference.

If watching our own experience and comparing it with what we are reading is done in an inaccurate way (like seeing the spiral from afar, or from above), we will make wrong assumptions, the process of “re-cognition” will deviate. In fact, if we take a closer look, we find to our utter surprise that there is a difference in the spiritual levels or stages. And this often offers a radical difference in the evaluation and judgment of the spiritual state of the person.

Confusing different levels, makes us read a grace or read a person’s experience thinking the person is at a certain stage, while the person is at a completely different stage! Similarities are tempting and we often rush into conclusions.

3- Feeling we can relate while we read a spiritual book: it is not because we read about a grace or a set of graces and feel good about it and can relate to them (like, pleased, feel good) that it means we have reached that level. Illusions are very common.

II- My warning for you:

It is truly the most difficult Mission in the Church: to be involved in the ministry of Spiritual Life. No discussion about that. It is easy to study and pass exams intellectually, one can be brilliant intellectually but quite ignorant and misleading if he or she endeavours to work in the field of Spiritual Life. Intellectual acumen is one part of the ministry. Important, necessary and should be of high quality (solid Philosophy, solid general Theology (especially dogmatic, moral and pastoral theology), and solid Spiritual Theology). No fancy knowledge here! Solid and traditional.

My point for you is the following: of course, having a Degree in Spiritual Theology is something very good, but, paradoxically, the Degree doesn't qualify you. So only focusing on getting the degree is wrong. Worse, being prevented from becoming a master in spiritual life because of the lack of the degree would affect your Call seriously.

It is never never enough to just base everything on Science, on the Degree! More things are needed and can be implemented or strengthened from now onwards.

Again, the Degree doesn't qualify you, it just informs you about spiritual life according to a certain school or way of engineering it today. The Degree gives you an idea of the 2000 years of experience and knowledge of the Church about Spiritual Theology. In a way, it roots you in the Church.

But it never replaces the thousands of hours of personal study (study, not reading) and personal research. It will never replace the advice of a good Tutor in the field. Impossible. It will never replace the hours of Spiritual Direction received. There is the added danger that study can inflate our ego! In Spiritual Theology, true study should deflate the ego and should make one very prudent before making any assumption.

What does the above mean? Am I dissuading you from venturing in this field? No, on the contrary. I am inviting you to do a great deal of work, to study, and of course to get the degree! But I am also saying: don't ever think that the degree is enough! Never! Spiritual Theology is a practical science so without experience and tuition (discernment) it is impossible to teach properly or to form.

Humility, patience and resilience are necessary. Great charity also is of the essence: love for people, loving to help, loving to understand them, and an immense devotion to the Holy Spirit and to Our Lady.

Please don't be prevented by not having yet obtained your Degree. Even if you had a degree, if you were to think that this were enough, that would be a crime! Inherent in Master ship is a sacred triangle: science, experience, discernment, well blended together.

If humility is needed to grow spiritually, humility is a million times more important if somebody feels called to teach (form in) the Spiritual Life. Humility manifests itself in the form of a great spirit of supernatural obedience.

Avoid at all costs a spirit of improvisation, of rushing, of amateur science or discernment. Many people today in the Catholic Church who work in the field of Spiritual Life fall into these categories.

Continue please, but in humility... experience... love. Don't neglect personal Tuition and Spiritual Direction!!

in Mary

Jean Khoury

194- Q&A on Lectio Divina

It is always advisable to have questions and answers, on any important issue, in order to gain some clarity. We have said in a previous article how important it is to check on a one to one basis session our own practice of Lectio Divina. A person with experience can very easily spot the pitfalls and also give more explanations and confirmation that the procedure one is following is the correct one.

Practical questions, from real practice of Lectio Divina help discernment even more. Below is a series of questions based on three days of experience.

Hi Jean,

Here are the words I got while practising Lectio Divina. I am just starting so if you please, I would like to know if I am doing it correctly or not.

Wednesday:

First reading:      The statutes and decrees - words = Jesus Christ.

Gospel:                Christ, the Word, completes the law.

Act:                      Reflect Christ in my thoughts, deeds and words.

Thursday:

First Reading:    Listen to my voice', 'walk in all ways that I command', 'I sent you untiringly   all my servants' = Work and cooperate with God

Gospel:            Every kingdom divided against itself' = so we must be at one with God's kingdom = cooperating with Him.

Act:                      Unite my will with His.

Friday:

First Reading:     The passage 'I will heal..., I am like a verdant cypress tree, because of me you bear fruit' = Rely on God in all aspects

Gospel:               'Our Lord our God is Lord alone' = He alone is all things; He is the only power to trust.

Act:                        He is to be my focus.

So my questions are:

- Are these actions specific enough or have I cut off too early?

- Also, might I have manipulated them according to my own fanciful desires? 

I did the latter at one point on the first day – where I saw the word ‘letter’- when it occurred to me, I may have to write an email with His words to my brother. But I had been thinking about writing the email to my brother, so I wasn't sure if that was actually from Christ or from my own procrastination?  So, I discarded it.

Friday, I thought He was telling me to forget some sweet temptations from friends to go out and have fun etc. but the kind of fun as I don’t think it is conducive to the spiritual life.  Again, I am not sure this is what He meant as these considerations had crossed my mind.

Thank you and God bless. 

NA

Thank you NA for your questions. To start with, I have two points to underline and they are criteria of discernment.

1- First and foremost, your practice is already showing signs of the beginning of the supernatural action of God. The evidence for this is the fact that the two texts suddenly become one, having in each case the same message, which is what you seem to have found in the three days you mention, i.e. the fact that in one text you find a passage (word, sentence, expression) that resonates with the other one. The Holy Spirit allows this to happen because both texts are the Word of God, inspired, divine, therefore multi facetted and multi layered, so the Holy Spirit allows this unifying effect to happen: on a deeper level, crossing the skin of the fruit of the letter of the texts, or the shell enclosing the pearl, is tantamount to God himself who is showing you the same message as long as, of course, the text is not being excessively manipulated. Since in both passages it is the Living Word of God who speaks through the text, since only Jesus and we are here, the message is one.

You seem to have experienced this effect. Which is in itself already the beginning of the supernatural action of God and not the work of your mind.

2- Now, as you will notice the light or message you are receiving (you allude to it saying: Action), is still very general, capable of having many applications. It is still in the mind, but not in the lower discernment part of the mind that almost touches the will. Remember what we want is for the Divine Message coming from Christ to become flesh in us. We need to put it into practice. We don’t want a general indication, or a resolution. We need an act, a precise act.

Growth, real supernatural transformation, supernatural virtue is triggered by a synergetical act (two energies put together Hand in hand), i.e. an act suggested by God, an act that finds its origins in God… not a general piece of advice that you can apply in many different ways! No! An actual application. The action you mention is like a general law. What we need is one, only one, real application.

An act that finds in God its origin, its support and its finality, its goal – to render praise to God.

Q:  My LD today

First reading:   New heaven and earth, Jerusalem a joy, people to eat fruits they plant and house they build.

Gospel:             Come before my child dies, your son will live

Word:               God wishes life for all which is found in Jesus, if we live in Him.  He will heal us but it depends on how much we want it and trust Him.

Act:                   Pray and believe.

This lectio today, is very similar to yesterday’s LD. I am praying and I believe so why is He still telling me the same? Just want to check I’m not mishearing Him

Jean: “Pray and believe” as an action is too generic. What was meant by it?  In order to know it you need to ask the Lord during LD.  LD is a dialogue, where you have all the right to question, to ask for clarity. Remember Our Lady in the Annunciation: she asks the Angel: “how will this be?”

In this dialogue between you and the Lord, you need to keep insisting on asking for clarity on how to apply this general message of “pray and believe” today. We always need to insist with a beautiful trusting insistence until He answers. We humble ourselves even more, we create a space in us for the Word (here the explanation of the word He is giving us). We are ready for conversion, for a new step, for discovering something new about ourselves...

Q:  Actually, I haven’t told you everything about this “Pray and Believe”. In fact this message from the Lord was an invitation for me to pray for my non-believer friends and not to look at them like there’s no hope.

Jean: So He asked you to pray for a specific intention?

Q:  Since the weekend, I have been annoyed with a friend because he gets so angry when I mention God.  He had asked me why the world is so full of misery and I gave my opinion.  He got angry at the word God, so I have been saying to myself not to hope for him anymore as he has got too close to the other side.  He dabbles with all other spiritualties.  So perhaps Jesus is telling me not to be annoyed and pray and hope.  Or I’m just mishearing Him.

Jean:  When you started LD did you mention the issue to Him? Were you still annoyed? Did what He asked you to do surprise you? Or was it more or less expected. - Just checking, as in order to discern, I need to ask these questions.

Q:  No, I didn’t mention it to Him. Whenever I start LD, I only pray to hear His words and ask Him to tell me what He wants. Then I read the passages and look up commentaries to understand more. Then I read the passages again and pray.  I wasn’t in fact thinking of my friend or anything. BUT I did wonder what He was trying to tell me about my life personally and around me.  He suddenly popped into my mind.

It was during the weekend and I was thinking that there was no hope for my friend though I know it’s not my place to judge. I kept saying to myself that he was in too deep with the devil because he hates the Catholic Church and God. So this is my sin.

Jean:  Good. Since the Word you received looks like an unexpected turn, and not in your mind initially, I would rather believe that it is coming from Him.  Did you then discuss it with Him?

Q: No, I didn’t discuss it with Him, but I will try discussing it with Him tonight. 

Jean:  From now discuss with Him in your mind and heart. LD is for today not for tomorrow. Don't waste these hours. The act is meant to be implemented today.

Q:  Sure will do. One LD a day is enough to stress me out.

Jean:  No stress.  It is a GREAT JOY to meet the Risen Lord and know He came to you and talked to you.  

Q:  Yes, but the stress is whether I hear Him right. 

Jean:  No, you will learn to recognise His Word.  It fills you in the beginning of the day with excitement: “What will He ask me to do?”

160: The Second Level of Discernment

New Stage of Spiritual Growth

____

To discern is to sift, to filter, and more precisely to separate two things that at first sight look the same. Discernment is penetration into something at a deeper level. It requires closer examination to seek out differences. Distinguishing between two or more things means, in fact, that we have the capacity to discern between them.

In the Scriptures, God is asking us to discern which spirit is guiding us: is it God's Holy Spirit, or a bad spirit? Let us bear in mind that we have three enemies (three bad spirits): the Devil (bad, filthy spirit), the World (the thoughts and ways of the world) and the Flesh and its bad inclinations.

The first level of discernment in spiritual life is to discern between something good or spiritual and something bad. The first choice comes from God, and is an invitation to follow Him. The second one comes from one or more of our enemies, asking us to follow them. We remain at this level of discernment for a while, so that we are enabled to grow and become more rooted in God. We find ourselves implementing a new way of life, having times for prayer. In this first stage, the more we choose God and follow His Path, the more we grow spiritually. We become therefore a "spiritual person".

When a person grows spiritually and becomes more rooted in God, henceforth having a committed daily spiritual life, when the person starts to receive graces in abundance, on a daily basis, becoming therefore a "spiritual person", at a certain point, another level of discernment imposes itself as necessary: discerning between a "true good" and a "false good". Both look good, but one is truly good and the other is so only in appearance! Hence the need to discern: which one is really good to the core? Discernment here implies that we need to go deeper, beyond the top layer, in order to see the reality. Why and how can this happen?

The reality is that we are no longer being tempted to choose between a bad sinful thing and a good holy thing. Rather, now, God is allowing us to be tempted by two “goods”, one being truly good and the other having only the appearance of being good/spiritual.

On closer examination we see God's loving-kindness at work for, initially, what He gives us is the "spiritual milk" (see Paul 1 Cor 3, 1-2) which appeals to not only the new man in us, but to both the old man and the new man in us. In fact the old man in us at this juncture is very big, while by contrast the new man in us is still very small. The result is that God has to lower himself and talk the “old man” language to us - the "spiritual milk", - otherwise, being so weak, we would not be able to cope and to grow spiritually. These “candies” so to speak, then, support this initial weakness and are more adapted to our low capacities. In truth we are babes as yet, even if we think we have already reached the goal of conversion! He then proceeds progressively to propel us forward to allow the new man to grow, as He helps and guides us to make acts of Faith, acts of Hope and acts of Love.

Once the human being is well rooted in his new spiritual life, God starts to change tack: instead of giving "milk" He slowly moves to “solid food”… and here a new stage of discernment is needed. We are no longer dealing with spiritual "beginners", but with "advanced" spiritual persons! This turning point is to be understood as very important and has to be well managed. The newness of the teaching and doctrine is simply mind-blowing, and almost shocking to normal "spiritual persons".. Why? Because we start to discover the immense difference between what it implies and what we previously thought it implied. Should this be disappointing? On the contrary! It should be thrilling to find something new and correspondingly to grow! However, it can still come as a great shock because much of what one thought was spiritually correct to do, has now to be avoided!

The great master of this new level of discernment is St John of the Cross. There are three places, at least, where we can find his solid doctrine on the second level of discernment. Here they are not mentioned in their order of appearance in his works:

1- One in the Dark Night of the Sense (Dark Night, Book I), Chapter 1 onward.

2- The Second Book of the Ascent of Mount Carmel, especially the first ten chapters.

3- The drawing of Mount Carmel made by the Saint himself.

1- Dark Night Book 1: In these chapters, he takes the list of the seven mortal sins and applies them in the spiritual sense: spiritual pride, spiritual greed, spiritual lust, spiritual laziness, spiritual gluttony,... He calls them the "spiritual imperfections".

It is very rare to have such lucidity amongst the Spiritual Masters of the Church.

The fact that St John of the Cross speaks to a "spiritual" person and points out serious spiritual imperfections (spiritual sins) is in a way almost unheard of in the history of spirituality. It is part of his genius and mission in the Church.

Usually being a spiritual person is considered to be something good, because the person converted to Jesus is now on the right path, and should be praised for all her effort and for her new life (new habits, new spiritual life and commitments). Here, St John of the Cross goes against that received, very obvious and common opinion. He says: be careful, there is a new level of discernment to be achieved now; after having had a long committed initial spiritual life, the time has come for a deep change (a new conversion)! He opens our eyes to the existence of two paths to follow in the spiritual world (please see the explanation of the drawing of the Mount below): one is large, to the left and one is a narrow path, in the middle. Initially, the "spiritual person" sees them as one, one good thing!

2- Ascent of Mount Carmel Book II: We find here, especially in the first ten chapters, a more technical explanation of the new discernment. The Saint explains the "true spirit" or " the true spiritual purity" required in order to be united with God. In these ten chapters he explains what is spiritual purity, i.e. seeking God/Jesus for himself and not for what we can get from Him. He lays down the guiding principles that he will apply, case after case for the Act of Faith, the Act of Hope and the Act of Love (the rest of Book II and Book III).

3- The Drawing of the Mount: This drawing is the true sword of discernment. And a drawing is worth a thousand words.

Copy similar to the original

Better rendering of the 3 ways

First of all, let us have a look at the drawing. Above we have three drawings of Mount Carmel as conceived by the Saint. The first one is a very close drawing from the original made by the Saint himself. The second is a literal translation of it into English. The third is a better rendering of the three ways of the Mount Carmel. The summit of the Mount represents the "Union with Jesus" or "Spiritual Marriage". The human being needs to climb the Mountain of Holiness in order to reach Jesus in His Fullness.

The genius of St John of the Cross is that he presents three possible ways and not two:

a- To the right: the way of the lost (or misled) spirit (the translation on the drawing is wrong)

b- To the left: the way of the imperfect spirit

c- In the middle: the path of the perfect spirit.

The revelation St John of the Cross is bringing to us is, first, the existence of b and c and, second, the necessity to stop (after a certain time of being fed by the milk) feeding into b (the way of imperfect spirit).

St John of the Cross' genius and "newness" of teaching and doctrine is to show us that there are real spiritual “goods” (the road to the left) that are NOT in any way God himself! They are created goods and not the Uncreated very God. This is news to us and is shocking. This IS the second level of discernment: spiritual good and the Naked Jesus as he calls Him. What this means is that we discover the necessity to love Jesus for himself and not for the “goods” that we receive (and often sense) from Him!

These “goods” are created “goods”, whether we want to believe it or not. And at the new turning point, God allows the Devil to tempt us with a subtle but increased power: inducing us to become attached to and seek the spiritual “goods” Please note the road to the left on attachment to spiritual goods ("goods of heaven"): spiritual knowledge, glory, pride, consolation, rest... This road is not leading to Jesus, the Jesus wanted purely for himself...

Why do we have to neglect such spiritual goods? Things we thought initially were good to be sought out? The answer lies in the Old Man who initially was in control of us and of our spiritual life. God, then, had to lower himself and present us with the bait of taste, consolation and feelings which we get from Him. But this is only a path for beginners. When the person starts to be more rooted in God and in new spiritual habits, God seeks to change the way he acts, switching to a different way of dealing with him, trying out this “solid food, and encouraging the person into a higher way of dealing with God: to seek, now, Jesus purely for himself, the Naked Jesus.

The second level of discernment can be explained by another image: the Divine Fisherman offers bait to the Fish. Then, when the Fish firmly bites into the hook, and is solidly attached to it, the Fisherman knows that if He lifts him up out of the water he will not escape. Similarly, the mother, after breastfeeding for a period of time, will start to wean the baby when she feels it is the right time... and start to give him more solid food. Otherwise there will be no growth!

Conclusion

Finally, if we want to understand the spiritual imperfections and sins specific to this stage of spiritual life (it is important to note that this is not to be required of beginners otherwise we would be going against God's work), we need to read the profound and strong doctrine of St John of the Cross presented and explained in the first chapters of Book 1 of The Dark Night.

If we want to understand the true spiritual purity, the pure spirit, how to deal with God in purity, we need to read and study the first ten chapters of the second book of the Ascent of Mount Carmel.

Lastly, a general synthetical overview of discernment is to be found when looking at the drawing of Mount Carmel. First level of discernment is to distinguish (a) from (b + c). Second level of discernment, is to distinguish between b and c.

Relying only on the first stage of discernment as the only known possible means of discernment has been the case for many spiritual directors and writers for centuries. St John of the Cross felt great pain seeing so many people whom God was starting to lead into the next stage of spiritual life, being erroneously led to to "feel" that God was taking away the spiritual milk; seeing too how they were treated with very little discernment, how they were being tortured by asking them to check hidden sins,... This is what moved him to write. Please do read the Prologue of the Ascent of Mount Carmel where he discusses this.

Note 1: Please bear in mind that in the Saint's thinking, the Ascent and Dark Night, are one book, not two. The first, Ascent, explains what we have to do in order to grow at each stage (1 and 2) and the second, Dark Night, explains what God wants to realise in us and what happens if we put into practice what we have learned in the Ascent.

Note 2: Please remember that one cannot apply the second level of discernment to beginners. It can seriously damage their spiritual life and go against what God has to do initially in them. Each of the two levels of discernment is very different from the other and therefore they should be used with discernment and prudence, applying them wisely, otherwise we will not be serving God in people.

Note 3: The Second Level Course, Initiation into Spiritual Life, goes into full detail about this second stage. Please have a look at the initial videos. If you want to see the rest of the Course please do contact me at jeancyrille @ gmail.com Thank you.

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